Subscribe to this blog

Follow by Email

Search This Blog

Pages

Metal Clay Masters Registry

This blog post was originally written for the London Jewellery School blog which you can read here

The Metal Clay Masters Registry is a structured program of metal clay projects that are independently evaluated. You work at your own pace and on your own to complete the pieces to the specifications of the project. There are fifty projects in all and after you have passed ten you are designated as having attained one level e.g. Masters Registry I, on passing the next ten you have attained Masters Registry II etc.

At the time of writing no one has completed all fifty projects. There are two people in the world who have attained mastery level 4 (passing 40 projects) and they’re both British! They include visiting LJS tutor Julia Rai and Lesley Messam. There are British artists currently at all levels.

What are the categories?

There are fifty projects altogether in five categories (ten projects per category).

The categories are

Construction

Colour

Materials

Metal clay and other metals

Miscellaneous

There are specific guidelines for each project to tell you what is expected of the piece and you are marked against the criteria.

Why did I join?

I’ve known about the Masters Registry for a few years but have only just joined, primarily to stretch myself and give myself the challenge of following the project guidelines to make things I probably wouldn’t otherwise. Registration isn’t cheap so it is something you need to really consider before taking the plunge.

Julia Rai - cityscape pin

I highly recommend that you have a look at the Masters Registry website to see the types of project that people are making which are inspiring in themselves. I also suggest looking at Julia Rai’s website. She has photographed and written about every piece she has submitted for the registry and also explains about the pieces that didn’t pass and the feedback she received.

The Masters Registry is just that, it is for those who want to stretch out of their comfort zone to try to make things they wouldn’t ordinarily make. I’m already working on some pieces and I know this is going to be a long process with a lot of learning!

Comments

Post a Comment

Stay up to date!

Popular posts from this blog

I am pretty addicted to pinterest and love that we have so much access to inspiration as jewellers there. I have recently been drawn to unusual stone settings and I find it useful to consider how the jeweller has done it as it gives me a jumping off point for ideas. Here are a few innovative designs that I love.

I have decided to announce the theme for the coming month a week before the start of the month. This is to give people time to think about their designs, particularly those that are busy and have a lot to fit in.

The theme for February 2019 is .... music and lyrics

Here are some ideas to get you thinking about how to interpret the theme

Be inspired by

A song/piece of music you loveA specific lyric from a song A style of music e.g. classical, metal, rap, funk etcA musicalAn instrument/sMusic artwork (CD/LP sleeve or music video)A concert you went to (or wish you went to!)A music festivalChoose a musician, singer or composer you admire…

It's Black Friday again and even before the day arrived there were lots of deals around (and surely more to come). Black Friday is fairly new to the UK but it's always good to look out for a deal! Here are some of the best I've seen for metal clay artists. Do share any I've missed in the comments and I'll add them in

Clay, materials and toolsCookson Gold has discounts on clay and tools
I haven't seen any other discounts on metal clay but there are a lot of discounts on gemstones and beads out there including Beads Direct and Kernowcraft. Elsilver also have discounts, it's worth checking out their 25% off offer on dies.

Online courses
Jewellers Academy has 50% off their courses including 3 metal clay courses. Tip: buy the bundle with Julia Rai's metal clay charms course and my stone setting torch fired course as it's the same cost as my course on its own! There's also the new Fancy bezels, prongs and bails course by Julia Rai which is great. Use c…